Removable gondola car roof



vNm?. 22, 1932. Q Di BONSALL, 1,888,653

REMOVABLE GoNDoLA CAR ROOF Filed Dec. 5. 1950 f//5 ATTO/@vifs PatentedNov. 22, 1932 NiTeD STATES incassi;

PATENT forrrcl;

CHARLES DAVID BONSALL, F PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TG I. II.MUR- PHY COMPANY, 0F NEW? KENSIIl'G-TGN, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OFPENN- SYLVANIA nnmovennn eoNDoLA GAR Boor Application filed December 3,1930. y Serial No. 499,641.

This invention relates to ,removable roofs for gondola'cars. It has forits principal objects to provide a sectional sheetmetal roof that can bereadily assembled on and dis- '5 mounted from cars of the above type,that can be applied to cars of substantially different widths and tocars with bowed side rails, that will permit the sheets to be compactlystacked forr shipment, and that will embody other advantages hereinafterappearing. The invention consists in the removable gondola car roof, andin the parts and arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing, which forms part of this specification andwherein like symbols refer to like parts wherever they occur, f Fig. lis a plan view of a portion of a gondola car provided with a removableroof embodying my invention,

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section on the line 2 2 in Fig. 1,

Y Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section on the line 3 3 in Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section through the eaves portion of theroof on the line 4-4 in Fig. l; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical section through one of the roof seams, the sectionbeing taken through one of the Seam clamps on the line 5-5 in Fig. 4,the clamping member being shown in elevation.

Referring to the accompanying drawing,

my invention is shown in connection with a gondola car provided withlongitudinal side members or rails in the form of bulb angles l thatextend along the tops of the side frames ofA the car with theiruppermost flanges facing outwardly. A removable roof for such gondolacars comprises a series of metal roof sheets 2 that are provided alongtheir ends with depending eaves flanges 23 and along their side marginswith hollow upstanding stitfening or strengthening ribs 3 that haveoutstanding base flanges 4 at the lower edges of their outer side walls.The ribs 3 are of substantially inverted channelshaped cross-section andtheir side walls slope outwardly from top to bottom of the ribs. Asshown in the drawing, the body portions of the roof sheets 2 extendsubstantially straight from endA to end thereof, and side marginal ribs3 slope downwardly from the middle of said ribs to points adjacent tothe ends thereof where they are curved down-V wardly and merge into theplane of the flat body portions of the sheet where they are curveddownwardly to form depending eaves flanges 23. The surplus of metalresulting from the decreased height of the side marginal ribs 3 at theend'portions thereof is utilize-d to increase the width of the endportions of the base flanges l of said ribs.

The roof sheets are made long enough to span a gondola car of maximumwidth from side rail to side rail and are arranged on the car side byside with the upstanding side marginal ribs 3 of adjacent roof sheetssnugly fit-ting one over the other to form weatherproofing seams, andwith the depending eaves flangesy 23 of thesheets overhanging the outeredges of said side rails. Mounted on the top flanges of the side rails 1of the gondola car are eaves plates 5, which preferably extendlengthwise of said rails from end to end of the car. These eaves plateshave main body portions which rest llatwise on and are removably securedto the side rails, preferably by means vof bolts 6 that pass .verticallythrough said plates and the top flanges of said side rails. The boltreceiving openings in the plates 5 are in the form of elongatedvslots 7that extend transversely of said plates, whereby the plates can beapplied to cars for cars of different widths. rlhe outer side marginalportionsV of the eaves plates of the roof are oifset upwardly, as at 8,to form supports for the eaves end portions of the roof sheets; and saidroof sheets are rigidly secured to the sheet supportingl portions 8 ofsaid plates by means of carriage bolts 9 that extend through the widenedeaves end portions of the base flanges 4 of the overlapping ribs 3 ofthe sheets and the body portion of the sheets located therebelow. Theeaves strips are made wide enough to rest on the side rails of cars ofsubstantially different widths; and likewise, the slots 7 in said platesare made' long enough to register with the bolt holes in the side railsof the widestand narrowest of such cars.

The overlapped side marginal ribs 3 of adjacent sheets are securedtogether by clamps preferably located adjacent to and midway of theirends. Each of these seam clamps comprises yan inverted channelshapedmember l which is placed astride the upper portion of the overlappingrib of a seam with its depending legs bearing against the sloping sidewalls of said rib. The seam clamp is held in position by means of anupstanding stud or pin l1 that is riveted or otherwise permanentlysecured to the underlapping. ribI of the seam and projects upwardthrougha bossed openingl provided therefor in the overlapping rib` of said seamand through a hole provided therefor in the webl of the seam clamp 1.0.vAThe overlapped ribs' of' the s earn are drawntogether by means of' atapered draw key or wedge 13 which is driven into av taperedlongitudinal slot la formed `in the, rivet pin l1 above the clamp `O. Bythis arrangement the action oi driving the tapered draw key 1 3 into thetaperedis'lot le in the rivet pin ll causes the cla-mp l0l to bearagainst the opposite side walls of the overlapping rib and thus causesthe two ribs Efo be drawn tightly together.

N'lvlrie hereinbefore described roof has numerous advantages. It can bequickly and easily lapplied to and removed from the roof; it" providesweatherproof connections between the'afdjacent roof sheets and betweenthe' roof sheets and the side rails of the car; itmay be lappliedwithout alteration to cars of different 'widths and toV carsY with;bowed side rails; it will presentstraight eaves lines applied tovsaildbowed side rails; it is strong enoughA to support the vertical roof lo''d f; 'andaits'lat sheets are wellv adapted for staeking or piling andrequirea amount of space in shipping.

Qbviously, my invention admits of considu erable modicationinthe designof the seams and yst itening ribs, and I do not wish` tobe limited tothe specilic design shown.

lthat I vclaim is:

l, A'removable roof for gondola cars of substantially dierent widths,said root1 comprijsing a series of roof sheets spanning the carfrom.side rail to side rail and supported only at their ends, lmeans forremovably se- ,f curing adjacent margins of said sheets together to formweatherproof joints therebetween, and plates boltedto the tops of saidside rails anditovthe undersides of said roof sheetsfsaid plates beingwide enough to bear uponthe side rails of the narrowest and the widestofsuc'h cars, the hole invsaid 1wlates for the bolts'that secure said'plates to saidside railsbeingj elongated in directions transverse tosaid rails. l

2, Afremovable roof for gondola cars, said roof comprising roof sheetsadapte-d to extend from side rail to side rail of the car and providedalong their adjacent margins with hollow ribs that are lapped to formweatherprooiing seams, eaves plates removably secured to said side`rails and to Said roof sheets, inverted channel-sliaped clampsstraddling the lapped ribs of adjacent sheets, a pin permanently securedto the underlapping rib of a seam and extending upwardly throughregistering openings in the overlapping rib and in said clamp, said pinbeing provided above said clamp with a longitudinal slot, and a taperedkey engaging said slot.

3. A removable rootfor gondola cars, said roof comprising roof sheetsadapted to extend from side rail to side rail of the car and providedalong their adjacent margins with hollow ribs which overlap each othertoy form weatherprooiing seams, means for removably securing said ribstogether, eaves plates resting latwise on said side rails and havingupwardly offset portions adapted to overhang the outer edges of saidside rails, bolts "for removably securing Said eaves plates rto saidside rails,`an,d bolts for removably securing the roof sheets to theupwardly offset portions of said eaves plates, the opening said eavesplates for the securing bolts therefor being elongated transversely ofsaid side rails.

Signed at New Kensington, Pennsylvania, this 28th day of November, 1930.

CHARLES DAVID BONSALL.

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